Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College will hold two ceremonies honoring its summer 2024 graduates Thursday, Aug. 1, on campus in the college’s Roquemore Auditorium.

The 2 p.m. ceremony will celebrate graduates of Associate of Arts, Associate of Science, Business, Computer Technology, Criminal Justice, Education, and Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing Technology programs. Health Science and Nursing graduates will be honored at the 4 p.m. ceremony.

St. Matthews Mayor Helen Carson-Peterson will speak at the 2 p.m. ceremony. She is a Calhoun County native and graduate of John Ford High School. She attended Heffley and Browne Secretarial School in New York. She worked as a data analyst at SCE&G and program director for the Office of Economic Development, and started several businesses, including Carson Funeral Home. Carson-Peterson served on Calhoun County Council for 16 years, and was elected mayor of St. Matthews in 2015.

Walter Bennett, chief executive officer of MUSC Health – Orangeburg, is the keynote speaker for the 4 p.m. ceremony. The Manning native is a graduate of the University of South Carolina and Medical University of South Carolina, where he earned a Master of Health Administration in 2006. Bennett has worked in a variety of healthcare settings, from community health centers and critical access hospitals to academic medical centers and healthcare systems of all sizes. He spent most of his career with Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System before taking the helm at MUSC Health – Orangeburg.

Graduation tickets are required for admission. The ceremony will be streamed live on the college’s website, octech.edu.

Registration is happening now for fall. Classes begin Monday, Aug. 19. For more information and to apply, visit octech.edu or call 803.535.1234.